The Decision (18 page)

Elaine picked up a towel and pinned it to the line.
No, I can’t take the tourist dinners away from Grandma. She enjoys doing them. Besides, I’m not sure Grandma would be willing to move from this place, and I can’t expect Jonah to sell his home, which is close to the buggy shop—especially since he purchased his house not long ago and has been fixing it up for our future together
. She frowned.
Do we still have a future together? Maybe it would be best if I didn’t marry Jonah. He deserves to have a wife and family, and as much as it hurts to even think about it, I’m not sure I’ll ever be able to give him that
.

Things went well for Edna as she made her purchases in several stores, and she’d even run into her long-ago friend, Cindy, who’d been shopping in one of the stores. Edna invited Cindy to come over in a few days so they could get caught up on each other’s lives, but when Cindy said she’d be going home later today, the women said good-bye and parted ways.

Edna’s morning had been fun, but when she entered the Stitch and Sew and glanced at the clock, she realized it was way past noon and she should have been home already, eating lunch. She’d planned to bring a snack along, in case she got hungry. But she’d been in such a hurry to leave, she had forgotten about packing a snack.

Maybe I’ll go across the street to the Country Cheese and More and get something to eat
, she told herself.
Then I’ll come back here and finish my shopping before heading home
.

Edna left the store and made her way across the street. When she entered the store, she spotted Leah and her mother, Dianna, sitting at one of the tables. They smiled and waved her over.

“Is Elaine with you?” Leah asked.

Edna shook her head. “She’s at home doing the laundry, and I came into town to do some shopping. It’s taken me a little longer than I thought, so I decided to come over here and get some lunch.”

“Why don’t you join us?” Dianna suggested. “We’ve just barely started on our sandwiches, and it’ll give us a chance to visit.”

“I’d like that.” As Edna started for the counter to place her order, a feeling of wooziness came over her.
I probably feel this way because I need to eat
, she told herself.

After she’d ordered a sandwich and some iced tea, Edna took a seat across from Leah. Then she reached into her purse to get her medicine, which she was supposed to take before her meal. “Oh, oh,” she muttered, rifling through her purse.

“Is something wrong?” Dianna asked.

“I can’t find my medicine.” Edna’s hands trembled and perspiration beaded on her forehead. “I—I must have forgotten to put it in my purse before I left home this morning.”

“Are you feeling all right?” Leah asked. “You look pale, and…”

Leah’s face blurred, and her words faded. A wave of dizziness descended on Edna, and she spiraled into darkness.

E
laine glanced at the kitchen clock and frowned. It was an hour past lunchtime and Grandma should have been here by now.
What in the world could be keeping her?
she worried, pacing the floor.
I wonder if she stopped somewhere to eat lunch
.

Elaine looked at the shelf where Grandma kept her medicine and gasped. There sat the bottle.
Oh dear
, Elaine fretted as she reached for the medicine.
Grandma forgot to take it with her this morning
.

If I knew all of the places Grandma was planning to shop, I’d go looking for her right now
. Elaine went to the door, hoping to see Grandma pull in.
But I might not find her, and what if Grandma came home while I was out searching for her?

Elaine drew in a deep breath and tried to relax, realizing that fretting about this was getting her nowhere. What she needed to do was stay right here and hope that Grandma was okay and would be home soon.

Taking a seat at the table, Elaine bowed her head.
Heavenly Father, I’m worried about Grandma because she’s been gone so long and didn’t take her medicine. Please be with her, wherever she is, and bring her safely home
.

Elaine heard a car pull into the yard, and her eyes snapped open. Thinking it might be someone who had seen the sign at the end of their driveway advertising the dinners they hosted, Elaine hurried to the door. When she opened it, she was surprised to see Leah get out of her driver’s car. She only lived a few miles away and always came over by horse and buggy or on her bicycle.

Leah hurried to the house and approached Elaine with a worried expression. “I came to tell you that your grandma’s in the hospital.”

Elaine’s heart pounded and her mouth went dry. “Wh–what happened?”

“Mom and I were at Country Cheese and More, having lunch, and your grandma came in. She ordered something to eat and sat down at our table. A few seconds later, she blacked out.”

Elaine covered her mouth to stifle a gasp. “I just discovered a few minutes ago that she forgot to take her medicine along when she left home this morning, so I’m sure her blood sugar was probably out of whack.”

“We called 911, and the paramedics came soon after,” Leah explained. “As soon as they put her in the ambulance, I called our driver to bring me here. I knew you’d want to get to the hospital right away.”

“I certainly do. Danki, Leah, for coming to tell me. I’ll get my purse and be right with you.”

Sara had been avoiding the picnic area where she and Harley used to relax under the trees at the back of their property, but this afternoon she’d felt the need to go there. She had felt better after sleeping awhile and soon after started doing housework. Mark played contently after his nap and seemed well rested, but eventually he lost interest in amusing himself. Sara was more than ready to get some fresh air and figured Mark was, too. So she packed a picnic lunch, set her work aside, and decided to take a break. After being at Betty and Herschel’s, she needed a little downtime with her son.

As they sat together on the blanket she’d brought along, eating the last of their peanut butter and jelly sandwiches, Sara felt her body relax for the first time in many weeks. It did her heart good to see her little boy’s contented expression. She hoped he was enjoying this time with her as much as she was with him. Being in this area, near where Harley had been killed, didn’t bother Sara as much as she’d expected it to. In fact, she felt a sense of peace. Although she didn’t understand the reason her husband had been taken from them, she’d finally come to terms with his death, accepting it as God’s will.
For His ways are not our ways
, she reminded herself.

When they’d finished eating and Sara had washed Mark’s face and hands with some wet paper towels she’d packed, she decided that it might be nice to take a walk. “Should we go walking awhile?” Sara asked Mark in their traditional Pennsylvania-Dutch language.

He bobbed his head.

Sara clasped the boy’s hand as they strolled along their property line, stopping every once in a while to listen to the birds, look up at the lofty trees, and pick a few wildflowers. June was such a beautiful month. Adult birds were busy feeding their young, crickets had begun chirping, and the tiger lilies bordering her land were just beginning to bloom.

After a while, Mark stopped walking and said he wanted Sara to pick him up. So she lifted him into her arms and headed back to the blanket. She’d no more than laid him down when his eyes closed and he fell asleep.

The warm sun shining down on them made Sara feel sleepy, too, so she curled up on the blanket beside her precious little boy and closed her eyes. Lying there, she felt the gentle breeze as it blew across her face. That, along with the sweet melodies the birds sang, made her relax even more. Sara opened her eyes and watched as a flock of quacking ducks flew over. She glanced at her son and could tell by his even breathing that he was sleeping soundly.

Sara smiled and closed her eyes once more. The last thing she remembered before falling asleep was an image of her husband’s face the final time they’d come here together.

“Can you hear me? Can you open your eyes?” From a faraway distance, Edna heard a stranger’s voice.

Where am I?
she wondered, trying hard to open her eyes. People were talking. A child cried. A strange beeping noise kept going in the background.
Nothing seems familiar to me. I don’t think I’m at home in my bed
.

Slowly, Edna’s eyes opened. She blinked at the middle-aged woman dressed in white, standing beside her bed. “Who are you?” she murmured through parched lips.

The woman offered Edna a drink of water. “I’m a nurse. Do you know where you are?”

“I—I’m not sure.” Edna moistened her lips after drinking some water. It helped to quench her thirst.

“You’re in the hospital.”

Edna’s head ached, and she reached up to touch the lump on her forehead. “Wh–what happened to me? Why am I here?”

“Some of your friends followed the ambulance to the hospital,” the nurse explained. “They said you passed out, and they alerted us to the fact that you’re diabetic.”

“Oh, yes, I am.” Edna remembered going into the restaurant and ordering something to eat, but that was all.

“I’m going to leave you for a few minutes,” the nurse said, touching Edna’s hand. “The doctor will be in to see you soon, and your granddaughter will come once she gets here and has finished filling out the necessary paperwork.”

“Okay.” Edna took another sip of water and closed her eyes, trying to remember the events that led up to her being taken to the hospital. It was frustrating not to be able to recall the details of passing out, much less to be brought to the hospital and not know it until now.
I must have bumped my head when I fainted
, she told herself, touching the knot on her head.
That must be why I can’t remember much of anything right now
.

“Sara, wake up!”

Sara’s eyes opened suddenly, and she sat up with a start.
Harley?
She’d been dreaming about her husband, and then she’d heard his voice. That must have been part of the dream, she realized, rubbing her eyes as she became more fully awake. It had been such a nice dream until she’d heard his alarming voice.

Remembering that she’d lain down beside her sleeping son, Sara glanced at the spot where he lay. “Ach, Mark! Where are you?” she cried, seeing that her little boy was gone.